Behind the headlines in this week’s RN

RN is the leading business magazine for independent news and convenience retailers, providing news, actionable advice and real life case studies that can help you turn a profit. Every week, RN provides exclusive information on the magazine sector, while Pricewatch data allows you to compare your prices with fellow independent retailers, and the supermarkets.

Below is a selection of the latest stories from RN that we think you may be interested in.

Subpostmasters win first PO trial

Five hundred and fifty subpostmasters who claim they were falsely accused of fraud and theft have won a landmark victory against the Post Office (PO).

Last week at the High Court in London, Justice Fraser ruled in favour of the subpostmasters, stating the PO had a duty to act in good faith, which it had previously failed to do. The ruling changes the PO’s responsibilities to every UK branch owner.

The decision marked the end of the first trial, with another underway and two more to come. Only at the end will it be decided whether glitches in the Horizon till system caused the losses since 2000.

The judge slammed the PO: “There can be no excuse for an entity such as the PO to misstate, in such clearly expressed terms, in letters that threaten legal action, the extent of the contractual obligation upon a [subpostmaster] for losses.

“The only reason for doing so must have been to lead the recipients to believe that they had absolutely no option but to pay the sums demanded. It is oppressive behaviour.”

C-stores still getting ATM tax bills despite exemption

Retailers are still being billed for ATM business rates, despite the Supreme Court ruling the machines are exempt from separate rates. In November last year, the court ruled there would be no additional business rates charged on cash machines inside or outside stores. The court also ruled retailers would receive rebates of £381m backdated to 2010.

The Mail on Sunday boasts record 22.8% market share

The Mail, News UK and the Financial Times (FT) were the main front-runners in the ABC figures for February. Publisher DMG Media trumpeted the figures for its papers, particularly those for its Saturday and Sunday editions. The former is still the biggest-selling Saturday newspaper, increasing the gap between its closest rival, The Sun, by 6% year on year.